A Seattle Improvement Company Tried to Dispossess a Black Homeowner—He Cited the Constitution
S. H. Stone bought a lot in a 'high-class' residence addition. When white neighbors objected, the company moved to undo the sale—and his lawyer answered with the U.S. Constitution.
Seattle — Action has been taken by an improvement company which platted a high-class residence addition to Seattle to set aside a transfer of a lot in the addition to S. H. Stone because he is Black. The lot was sold on contract to a white woman, who transferred it, with the consent of the company, to Stone, whose color was not known to the company. Counsel for the company stated that it sought to dispossess Stone because his presence was objectionable to white owners of lots. Stone's counsel, also Black, cited the Constitution of the United States.
“Stone's counsel, also a negro, cited the constitution of the United States.”
Racial covenants and exclusionary real-estate practices did not need explicit laws to work; private companies and neighbors could enforce the color line through contracts and pressure. The story echoes modern fights over housing discrimination, exclusionary zoning and who gets to belong in a neighborhood.
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